"Mm..."
However, after pondering for a moment, Jia Zheng slowly shook his head, rejecting the proposal.
"Unwise."
As he spoke, he rose and paced back and forth across the hall a few times, then analyzed the situation:
"Although my brother-in-law now holds a high position and great authority, countless eyes are watching him."
"If he were to casually mobilize heavenly soldiers—even just a detachment—for such a 'private matter' as providing offerings from our Jia estate, it would give people an easy handle to use against him and invite gossip."
"The imperial censors and remonstrance officials in the Heavenly Court are already eager for an excuse to attack him."
"If they impeach him for 'using his position for personal gain' and 'recklessly deploying troops,' it would be hard to escape blame. That would be no wise course."
Jia Lian agreed that it made sense, but felt even more helpless:
"Then..."
"Are we really supposed to stand by and watch that tiny kingdom in some far-flung backwater pull these tricks?"
"Our Jia family..."
"Alas!"
"If only our ancestors had still been in charge of the Thunder Department, able to summon thousands of its heavenly soldiers with a single word! How could they have allowed these clowns to run wild?"
Indeed, back in the heyday of Duke Rong and Duke Ning, why would they have needed to fret over this?
One imperial edict would have sent Thunder Department generals to deal with it. Anyone who refused to submit would be struck down by the eastern heavenly thunder, reduced to dust along with every person and beast, not a single tile left standing!
Of course, Jia Lian knew those days were long past. Neither the Jia family nor the Heavenly Court was what it had been, and there was nothing he could do about